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Terwene
English•Español *this page is currently undergoing some changes* 'Classification' Terwene is an IAL (International Auxiliary Language) based in part on Esperanto grammar (with Chinese influence), but with words which originate mainly from the world's five most spoken languages: Chinese (Mandarin), English, Spanish, Hindi and Arabic. It is an a posteriori agglutinative SVO language, although much more inclined to isolating languages than most agglutinative languages, including Esperanto. 'Phonology' Terwene uses letters of the basic Latin alphabet. The stress is always on the syllable before the last one. 'Consonants' 'Vowels' 'Writing System' The ideal pronunciation for r is the trilled r, but any similar sound that's distinguishable from the rest of the alphabet is ok. Phonotactics Words can end in vowels, semivowels, or the following consonants: d, f, h, l, m, n, r, s, x. ''Roots should not end in more than one consonant. Words must not contain consonant clusters of more than two consonants (not counting semi-vowels). Each vowel can be assigned one semi-vowel when pronouncing a word, not two, for example "yawa" should be pronounced "ya-wa" not "yaw-a". 'Grammar' 'Pronouns' In the third person there is no distinction of gender, but there is distinction of animate or inanimate things. This can be interpreted in many ways. Usually, one would use "hi" for humans and "so" for any other thing. But more generally "hi" can be used for anything that is capable of communicating, however it can be used for animals, plants or inanimate things for stylistic reasons, such as speaking to or about pets. Plural pronouns are created adding -su, (I decided not to use the plural marker -s because a pronoun ending in -s creates conflict with verbs starting with s-, making for example "mis swan" (we are) sound like "mi swan" (I am)). "Mi" comes from all the European languages where it appears, such as Spanish, English, Italian, etc. "Tu" comes from Spanish, and it also appears in other European languages such as "du" in german. "Hi" comes from the English word "he" and from the Arabic word "hi" which means "she". 'Nouns' Normal nouns end in -e in singular form. The plural is formed adding -s. Apart from that, nouns don't change, but they can be combined to form new words. 'Verbs' Verbs end in -ar in infinitive, which is replaced by other endings according to tense or mood. Verbs have five suffixes which are used to create a lot of different verbs from just a few original verbs * '-ad gives the verb more duration, if the verb means an instant action, then adding this suffix usually makes it mean the result of that action. Examples: ** kahar = to say --> kahadar = to talk/speak ** har = to have --> hadar = to own ** bisar = to see --> bisadar = to watch/look at * '-ek '''gives the verb a more instantaneous meaning or the beginning of the action ** ranar = to run --> ranekar = to start running ** siar = to know --> siekar = to learn (to start to know) ** karar = to do --> karekar = to do suddenly ** har = to have --> hekar = to get/obtain ** dormar = to sleep --> dormekar = to fall asleep/to start sleeping * '-end gives it the meaning of the culmination of the action ** canar = to go --> canendar = to arrive ** dormar = to sleep --> dormendar = to wake up * '-if '''makes the verb transitive if it wasn't, else it makes it "to cause someone do X-action" ** dormekar = to fall sleep --> dormekifar = to make someone sleep ** dormendar = to wake up --> dormendifar = to wake someone up ** ekar = to begin --> ekifar = to (make something) start ** folar = to fall --> folifar = to drop * -'''es '''is only used on transitive verbs to make them intransitive or reflexive. ** teycar = to hold --> teycesar = to hold on to something ** teycekar = to grab --> teycekesar = to grab on to something (to start to be holding on to something) '''The conditional mood' This mood has two endings: -em for the past and -ax for the rest (usually present). In English the conditional mood is expressed with "would" and with the past tense, while the "past" of the conditional mood is expressed with "would + present perfect" and with past perfect. Present/Neutral: * Si mi si'od' xeno, mi labor'od' = If I knew how, I would work Past: * Si mi si'em '''xeno, mi labor'em''' = If I had known '''how, I '''would have work'ed' However, most of the time this "past conditional mood" in other languages is used to express something that could or should have been done, bat wasn't. In this cases, Terwene usually uses indicative past tense instead if context allows. * Mi pixw'el' no mancar so, tan mi karel = I should'n't '''have '''eaten it, but I did * Mi abl'el ranar, tan mi no karel = I could have run, but I didn't Participles The active participle is the verb root plus the -ant- suffix and an ending according to its function, and the passive participle is created adding -ed- instead: All examples: * -ant: ** -an: Mi swan mancanta mafes = I am eating apples ** -el: Mi swel mancanta mafes = I was eating apples ** -on: Mi swon mancanta mafes = I will be eating apples ** -ax: Mi swod mancanta mafes = I would be eating apples ** -em: Mi swem mancanta mafes = I would have been eating apples ** -os usually makes no sense with -ant, unless -ant forms something * -ad: the meaning can vary between present and past depending on the verb and context, for example someone "known" is someone known today, not in the past, on the other hand something "eaten" can be something already eaten (past) or something that is commonly eaten in a place (present). In order to differentiate, one can use words like "hoim" (now). ** -an: Mafes swan manceda = Apples are eaten (or were) ** -el: Mafes swel manceda = Apples were eaten (or had been) ** -on: Mafes swon manceda = Apples will be eaten (or will have been) ** -ax: Mafes swod manceda = Apples would be eaten ** -em: Mafes swem manceda = Apples would have been eaten ** -os: Mafes swos manceda = (Let) apples be eaten! Adjectives and adverbs Adjectives end in -a. They can agree in number with nouns adding -s, but it is not mandatory and is only recommended when it can prevent serious misunderstanding, for example when the noun does not appear in the sentence. Adverbs end in -o and never add -s. As you may notice, no ending uses -u or -i because that would cause problems with roots that end in w or y. 'Syntax' Possession Possession is shown using the te particle, which comes from the Chinese particle "de" and works pretty much like it works for possession ("de" has other uses in Chinese that Terwene doesn't, though), it's similar to 's in the English language, but also used with pronouns. For example: * Mi te awte = My car * Hi swan Lukas te penge = She/He is Lucas' friend * Dome swan tusu te = The house is yours * (Data) womire, xenule te dome swan ega, swan mi te penge = The man, whose house is big, is my friend. Questions Yes/No questions (or questions that give you a definite amount of answers) are created adding the particle ma at the end of the sentence. * Tu swan bona = You are good * Tu swan bona ma? = Are you good? Ma can also be used in negative sentences. * Tu no swan aytire ma? = You're not a father, are you? Questions that give you the possible answer usually use the "xor" connector which is basically an "exclusive or" from binary logic. Examples: * Tu bolan kafe xor cate ma? = Do you want coffee, or tea? In that sentence it is explicitly stated that you can choose either coffee or tea, but not both. Possible answers: * (Ya,) kafe. = (Yes,) coffee. * (Ya,) cate. = (Yes,) tea. * Naha, xyexe. = None, thanks. Instead, if the speaker wants to give the option of choosing more than one thing, the speaker shall use "or" which is an "inclusive or". For instance: * Tu bolan late, sukre or otre in tu te kafe ma? = Do you want milk, sugar or something else in your coffee? ** Ya, late. = Yes. milk. ** No, nahe. = No, nothing. ** Ya, amba = Yes, both. Other questions are made with xen- correlatives, unlike many languages but like Chinese, the order of the sentence does not change (although it is allowed) when asking questions, the xen- word is in the place where the answer will be. For example: * Tu mancan xene? = What are you eating? (You eat what?) * Tu swan xenule te aytise? = Whose mother are you? (You are whose mother?) Word order Basic word order Terwene follows the order SVO, but it is also allowed to use OSV (Yoda's order) and VSO. These three orders are allowed because out of the six possible orders one can only choose three and still be able to differentiate subject from object. The one-phrase rule is "the nearer to the left of the verb, is the subject", in SVO and OSV the subject is already to the left of the verb, and in VSO the subject is closer to the left of the verb than the object. SVO was chosen because it's the most widespread order in the world, which includes English, Spanish and Chinese, the three most spoken languages. Apart from order, there is nothing differentiating subject from object, so even pronouns stay the same when they are the object of the sentence: * Mi aman tu = I love you * Hi aman hi = She/He loves him/her * Misu bisel hisu = We saw them Adjectives and other modifiers Adjectives are usually placed before the noun they modify, but if it doesn't create misunderstanding, it is allowed to put them after the noun. When there are two adjectives for one noun, they can be placed together before or after the noun, they can be separated by the noun, by the word for and "he" or by nothing at all. * Bela fasta womise / Womise bela fasta / Bela womise fasta / Bela he fasta womise / Womise bela he fasta = The/a beautiful, fast woman In general modifiers are written before what they modify. Articles There is no specific definite (the) or indefinite article (a, an) but the number "wan" (one) can be used if necessary as indefinite article, for example there are words which can be either countable or uncountable, adding "wan" states that it is being used as countable: * Mi mancan mafe = I eat (the) apple (maybe one, maybe a slice, maybe mashed, maybe many) * Mi mancan wan mafe = I eat an apple * Mi mancan mafes = I eat (the) apples Instead there are words that can't be either countable or uncountable, in those cases "wan" should be avoided: * Mi swan wome = I am a/the person The definite article does not exist because its usage would vary depending on the speaker's mother tongue, it doesn't exist in very important languages such as Chinese and Russian, so for the sake of simplicity Terwene doesn't have it either. For example let's look at comparisons. The words for comparative and superlative are "mas" (more) and "mos" (most), and the word for "than" is "ke": * Mi swan mas bona ke tu = I'm better than you * Mi swan mas tala ke tu = I'm taller than you * Hi swan mas bela ke tu = She's more beautiful than you * Hi swan mos bela = He is the most beautiful But there is other way to say the superlative: * Hi swan mas bela ke tutules = He is more beautiful than everyone Numbers Numbers are combined just like in Chinese: * 10: deg * 20: dosdeg * 30: sandeg * 400: kwarpay * 800: copay * 9 000: naw mil * 323 456: sanpay dosdeg san mil kwarpay kwindeg low After 999 999 there are words created in a similar way to "million", "billion", "trillion" but more regularly: number + ilye. Terwene follows the same scale English does, each new word adds 3 zeros. Unlike English, the word "wan" can be omitted just like it is done for "deg", "pay" and "mil". * pay = one hundred * mil = one thousand * wanilye = one million * dos wanilye's '= two million * sif dosilye's' = seven billion It's also allowed to simply read the numbers, like Chinese speakers do for years and phone numbers. This is only when context allows it. For instance: * 1998 = wan naw naw co * 2000 = dos nul nul nul * 233445 = dos san san kwar kwar kwin Ordinal numbers are created adding -a. Other endings give other useful meanings: * wana = first * pay dosdeg coa = one hundred twenty eighth * wanao = firstly / in the first place * doso = in pair/s * dego = in groups of ten * ... The reflexive pronoun Terwene has the reflexive pronoun "sey" which is used for all the other pronouns. These are its uses: * To make the sentence reflexive for any pronoun (although it's also possible to use te same pronoun twice in the sentence to make it reflexive, for exampl "mi limpyan mi" or "tu tu limpyan"): ** Mi limpyan sey = I wash/bath myself ** Tu manqifan sey = You feed yourself * To specify or emphasize who is the owner of something: ** Hi visel (hi te) sey te dome = He saw his own house ** Mi aman (mi te) sey te fratise = I love my own sister * As a root for word building: ** seyaje = property ** mortar = to die; morta = dead; morte = death; mortifar = to kill; mortife = an assassination; --> seymortifar = to suicide; seymortife = a suicide Comparison * Comparative: ''' ** Hi swan mas bona ke tu = He is better than you ** Hi swan kimas tala ke tu = He is less tall than you * '''Superlative: ** Hi swan mos bona inter tutules/fro Argentine/de data oge = She is the best one among everyone/from Argentina/of that group ** Hi swan kimos tala = She is the least tall * Equals: Hi swan (datu) bela xeno tu = She is beautiful like you Subordinate sentences Subordinate sentences use either xen- correlatvies, or if no xen- correlative works, they use the particle ke * The xen- correlative is usually at the beginning of the subordinate sentence ** Mi no sian(,) xener hi swan = I don't know where he is ** Mi komprenan kos xene hi karel date = I understand why he did that ** Hi swan wome xenule te dome swan blodala = She is the person whose house is red * To connect sentences that can't be connected by a xen- word, the particle "ke" is used ** Mi sian ke hi swan en sey te dome = I know he's in his own house ** Mi komprenan ke date no swan ibla = I understand that's not possible * To connect sentences when the subordinate sentence represents a "ma" question (in English one would use "if" or "whether"), the particle "ma" is used ** Mi no siel ma hi swel en sey te dome = I didn't know whether she was in her house ** Mi kwestan ma hi kahadan Terwene = I ask whether she speaks Terwene 'Lexicon' Passing from one word type to another Changing the ending of a word can change its meaning from verb to noun, noun to adjective/adverb, and so on. Let's look what usually happens to the meaning: * Adj to verb: the verb usually becomes the transitive verb "to make something Xadj" ** gara = warm --> garar = to heat * Verb to adj: adjective for things that are used or necessary to do or related to the action of the verb ** mancar = to eat --> manca = for eating/related to eating * Verb to noun: this noun usually is the name of the action of the verb, but can also be the process of the verb: ** mancar = to eat --> mance = a meal ** dormar = to sleep --> dorme = sleep (noun) * Noun to verb: this verb is usually the action that is done with the noun ** martile = hammer --> martilar = to (use a) hammer * Adj to noun: the name of the quality of the adjective most probably ** bela = beautiful --> bele = beauty ** kibela = ugly --> kibele = ugliness ** fasta = fast --> faste = velocity ** ega = big --> ege = size ** tala = tall --> tale = height * Noun to adj: usually "related to noun" or "for noun" ** cate = tea --> cata = for tea *** cata peye = a cup for tea ** myawe = cat --> myawa = for cats Correlatives Correlatives are special words which consist of certain beginnings and endings and are ordered in a table. "kos -e" and "-a leye" are in the table to explain how they are formed and used because they are common correlatives, but they are not technically their own correlatives, but derived from other correlatives. This system can be used to create new ones too. The specific words for some of the horizontal meanings are: * ime = moment (this is also a suffix) * ere = place (this is also a suffix) * kose = reason * xenoe = way * use = quantity/amount * ule = individual (used like "person", "dude" or "guy") * leye = type/kind/class Examples of correlatives in use * -a ** Tu legan xena kitabe? = Which book are you reading? ** Data dome swan mi te = That house is mine ** Tu legel hoa kitabe ma? = Have you read this book? ** Tu legon soma kitabe ma? = Will you read some book? ** Kituta dyere karod date = No animal would do that ** Mi legod tuta kitabe = I would read every book ** Baha dyeres mancan rowe = Many animals eat meat ** Kibaha kitabes swan bona = Few books are good ** Mi bolan otra kitabe = I want another book ** Mi bolan legar renha kitabe = I want to read any book * -e ** Date swan xene? = What is that? ** Hoe swan awte = This is a car ** Swan some sor tawile ma? = Is there something on the table? ** Mi karel kitute! = I did nothing! ** Tute swan kibona hoer = Everything is bad here ** Mi bolan bahe = I want many things ** Mi bolan kibahe = I want few things ** Tu bolan otre ma? = Do you want another thing? ** Renhe swod bona hoim = Anything would be good now * -er ** Mi te awte swan xener? = Where is my car? ** Mi naskel dater = I was born there ** Swan pane hoer = There is bread here ** Mi sercendos mi te kitabe somer = I'll find my book somewhere ** Mi te kitabe swan kituter = My book is nowhere ** Mi dormel tuter = I've slept everywhere ** Mi canel baher = I've gone to many places ** Mi ablod canar (to) kibaher = I could go to few places ** Mi bolan canar otrer = I want to go to other place ** Dormos renher = Sleep anywhere * -im ** Misu mancon xenim? = When will we eat? ** Mi datim siel = Then I knew ** Hocanos hoim! = Come now! ** Tu somim hocanel to Argentine ma? = Have you ever come to Argentina? ** Mi kitutim dorman = I never sleep ** Mi tutim amon tu = I'll always love you ** Mi bahim canel (to) dater = I've gone there many times ** Mi kibahim canel (to) dater = I've gone there few times ** Hi canon otrim = She will go in other moment ** Hocanos renhim = Come here at any time * kos -e ** Kos xene tusu karel date? = Why did you do that? ** Kos date mi no canod to Mehike = Because of that I wouldn't go to Mexico ** Mi no dormel bono kos hoe = I didn't sleep well because of this ** Mi kos some no sercendel mi te awte = For some reason I haven't found my car ** Kos kitute mi karod date = For no reason I'd do that ** Mi aman hi kos tute = I love her for every reason ** Mi aman hi kos bahe = I love him for many reasons ** Mi canod kos kibahe = I'd go for few reasons ** Mi karod date kos otre, no kos date = I'd do that for another reason, but not because of that ** Hi mancan kos renhe = He eats for any reason * -o ** Tusu xeno karel date? = How did you do that? ** Hi swan dato tala xeno sey te aytire = He is as tall as his father ** Hoo oni karan keykes = This is how one makes cakes ** Somo hi no komprenel = Somehow he didn't understand ** Kituto mi karod date = No way I would do that ** Mi dormel tuto = I've slept in every way ** Mi ablan canar baho = I can go in many ways ** Mi ablod canar kibaho = I could go in few ways ** Misu ablan canar otro ma? = Can we go in another way? ** Tu ablan hocanar renho, tan hocanos = You can come in any way, but come * -us ** Tu mayel xenus pane? = How much bread did you buy? ** Mi necesan datus = I need that amount ** Hous kafe no swan sufica = This amount of coffee is not enough ** Mi necesan somus kafe = I need some coffee ** Mi han kitutus kafe = I have no coffee ** Mi han tutus kafe = I have all the coffee ** Mi han bahus kafe = I have a great amount of coffee ** Mi han kibahus kafe = I have a small amount of coffee ** Mi han otrus kafe, no datus = I have another amount of coffee, not that amount ** Mi xihwod renhus date = I'd like any amount of that * -ule(s) ** Xenules swan datules? = Who are those? ** Datule swan mi te frate = That one is my brother ** Houles swan mi te penges = These ones are my friends ** Somule karel date = Someone did that ** Kitutule(s) karod date = Nobody would do that ** Mi aman tutule(s) = I love everyone ** Bahules mancan pane = Many people eat bread ** Kibahules konan mi = Few people know me ** Otrule hocanendel, no hi = Someone else arrived (here), not her ** Renhule ablan karar date = Anyone can do that * -a leye (de) ** Tu han xena leye de awte? = What type of car do you have? ** Tu han data leye de awte ma? = Do you have that type of car? ** Tu konan tuta hoa leyes de pane ma? = Do you know every one of these types of bread? ** Soma leyes de dyeres mancan rowe = Some types of animals eat meat ** Mi han kituta leye de pane = I have no type of bread ** Mi han tuta leye de pane = I have every kind of bread ** Mi han baha leyes de cate = I have many types of tea ** Mi han kibaha leyes de kafe = I have few types of coffee ** Mi no han data leye, tan mi han otra leye = I don't have that type, but I have another type ** Renha leye swon sufica = Any type will be enough The useful word "ke" "Ke" has many uses, most of them are designed to make our lives easier, sometimes by replacing longer or more specific words when they are not really necessary. "Ke" for comparisons As seen previously, "ke" is used as the word "than" for comparisons: * Hi swan mas bona ke tu = He is better than you * Hi swan kimas tala ke tu = He is less tall than you "Ke" in subordinate sentences As seen previously, "ke" can be used to connect sentences when they can't be connected with xen- correlatives: * Mi sian ke hi swan en sey te dome = I know he's in his own house * Mi komprenan ke date no swan ibla = I understand that's not possible * Mi no siel ke hi swel en sey te dome = I didn't know that she was in her house "Ke" replacing xen- words When context allows and xen- words are either long, obvious, or simply make a sentence ugly, they can be replaced with "ke": * Hi swan wome ke dorman hoer (instead of "xenule") = He is the person who sleeps here * Data womire, ke te dome swan ega, swan mi te penge (instead of "xenule") = That man, whose house is big, is my friend * Tu swan ke te aytise? (instead of "xenule") = Whose mother are you? * Tu legan ke kitabe? (instead of "xena") = What book are you reading? * Date swan ke? (instead of "xene") = What is that? * Mi te awte swan ke? (instead of "xener") = Where is my car? * Kos ke tusu karel date? (instead of "xene") = Why did you do that? Days, months and years The name of the days is created in a similar way to Chinese and Portuguese, with numbers. Months too. Monday is considered the first day of the week. The system is really simple: number + a (for ordinal number) + rote. There are two words for "day" in Terwene, one with the meaning of "rotation" for the 24 h day (rote), and one which represents the hours of light of one day (sole), which also means "Sun". Months are created the same way but with the word "lune" which means both "moon" and "month". And weeks are lun+av+e, meaning "a fraction of moon". The word for year is "yare". The order of dates is dd/mm/yyyy, let's see some examples: * Mi naskel ces sana hore he dosave dosarote degwana (rote) de kwaralune wan naw naw co ** I was born at 3:30 Tuesday the 20th of April 1998 * Mi dormel dur lunave = I slept during one week You may wonder "what happens between 1st and 7th of every month? because "Wanarote" is "Monday", not "first day of the month"". Well, most probably one would say just "wana" (first) to refer to the date and "Wanarote" to say "Monday", but also one could put the adjective after the word "rote wana" to make it clear that it's not "Wanarote", or hope context would clarify it, for example if you say "wana rote de Kwaralune", it clearly doesn't mean "Monday of April", it can only mean "April 1st". Common phrases * Haye = Hi/Hello * Bona rote = Good day (at any time) * Bona sole = Good day (during daytime) * Bona kisole = Good night * Bona morne = Good morning * Bona kimorne = Good afternoon * Til sun = See you soon * Til posrote = See you tomorrow * Kihaye = Bye * Xyexe = Thank you * Kixyexe = You're welcome * Preye = Please * Ihane = Sorry * Bonhocanende = Welcome * (Tu swan) xeno? = How are you? (sing.) * (Tusu swan) xeno? = How are you? (pl.) * Bono, he tu(su)? = Good, and you? * Bona manqare! = Bon appetit! * Bona voyaqe! = Bon voyage! (Good trip!) * Helse! = Health! Prepositions Important note: when prepositions are used alone (they are not working as prepositions), it is recommended to place them at the end of the sentence or in the place where they create the least misunderstandings, or a comma is placed after to representing a rather long silence. To “to” direction * Hi hocanon to urbe = she will come to the city * Hi kahadan to hisu = he speakes to them Ces '''“at” relatively in the same position but not exactly * Mi te penge swan ces porde = my friend is at the door * Mi te frate swan ces tawile = mi brother is at the table * Hi swan ces angle = she is at the corner '''Fro “from”, position or time * Mi canel fro angle to mi te dome = I went from the corner to my house * Hisu swan kronules fro wan naw naw co = They are kings from 1998 * Hi swan fro Argentine = She is from Argentina * So swan fro arbaje = It is made of wood Te “ 's ” possession * Luke te kitabe = Luke's book * Hoa awte swan egikere te = This is the university's car De “of” shows some relation or expreses quantity * Kitaboteke de urbe (Urbe te kitaboteke) = the city's library (not necessarily owned by the city) * Peye de kafe = a cup of coffee (a cup full of coffee) Dur '“during/while” * Dur mi manqel, hi trinkel = While I was eating, he was drinking * Mi no futan dur mornes = I don't walk during the mornings E'n “in” necessarily inside, can be metaphoric or figurative * Mi residan en data dome = I live in that house * Mi ikan en wan egikere = I study in a university * Tu swan en xor kien ma? = Are you inside or outside? Kien '"outside" * Tu swan kien dome ma? = Are you out of the house? * Misu canos (to) kien = Let's go outside '''Til '"until” both for time and place * Mi manqel til nawa hore = I ate until 9:00 * Misu ranos til dome! = Let's run up to the house! '''Ko “with” * Mi manqan mafes ko frutakwe = I eat apples with juice * Ko tu mi swan mas bono = With you I'm better * Hi residan ko hi te frates = He lives with his siblings Kiko '''“without” * Mi trinkan kafe kiko late = I drink coffee without milk '''Par “for” * Mi karel hoe par tu = I did this for you * Hi karan keykes par kimayar = I make cakes for selling * Peye par uvalkole = a cup/glass for wine Kos '''“because (of)” * Kos date mi no mayan mafes = Because of that I don't buy apples * Hi no hocanon kos sey te kihelse = She won't come because of her illnes * Mi no manqan kos mi ne xihwan date = I'm not eating because I don't like that '''Xya “under” * Womihe swan xya tawile = A child is under the table * Mi canel (to) xya tawile = I went under the table * Hi swan xya = He is below Sor “on” * Swan mafes sor tawile = There are apples on the table Super "over" over something but not touching it * Tayres udanan super misu te awte = Birds fly over our car Tayti '“instead” * Mi trinkan tayti tu = I drink instead of you * Mi trinkan tayti manqar = I drink instead of eating * Tayti, tu manqan = Instead, you eat '''Amam '"in front of" place * Mi swan amam tu te dome = I am in front of your house 'Kiamam '"behind" * Mi swan kiamam tu = I'm behind you 'Pre '"before" only for time * Premorne = early morning * Mi naskel pre baha tempe = I was born a long time ago * Pre mi dormekel mi manqel = Before I fell asleep, I ate * Pre dormekar mi manqel = Before falling asleep, I ate * Mi kitutim sentel date pre = I'd never felt that before 'Pos '"after" only for time * Pos dormendar mi manqel = After waking up, I ate * Pos mi dormendel mi manqel = After I woke up, I ate * Mi karon date pos = I'll do that after/later '''Pas "next to" * Mi swan pas awte = I am next to a car * Xene swan pas tu? = What is next to you? Far "far from/far/away" * Mi swan far = I am far * Date swan far misu = That is far from us * Canos far! = Go away! Kifar '"near/nearby" * Mi swan kifar tu = I'm near you * Misu canos somer kifar = Let's go somwhere nearby * Data kifara kafere swan bona = That nearby cafe is good '''Haw '"about" * Tu sian haw xene? = What do you know about? 'Tra '"through" * Tra venteporde encanan vente = Through the window enters wind 'Cirki '"around" * Cirki sandeg = around thirty * Cirkicanar = to go around * Cirki dome swan awtes = Around the house there are cars '''Inter "between/among" * Internatyona = international * Mi swan inter arbes = I'm between the trees Anti '''"against" * Anti kihelse = against (for) an illnes * Anti mure = against the wall * Mi swan anti tu = I'm against you '''Per "by/using" * Hi hocanon per awte = He'll come by car * Mi martilan per martile = I hammer? with a hammer Kiper '''"without" without an instrument * Mi martilan kiper martile = I hammer without hammer '''Trans "crossing/at the other side of" * Mi te dome swan trans sadake = My house is at the other side of the street * Trans data nade swan otra lande = Crossing that river it's another country Beyon '''"beyond" * Misu canos (to) beyon urbe = Let's go beyond the city * Womoge kitutim canel beyon Lune = Humankind has never gone beyond the moon '''Exepti "except, appart from, other than" * Mi manqan tute exepti mafes = I eat everything except apples * Tutules hocanel exepti tu = Everyone came except you Preffixes * Ho-''' from ho- correlatives, this particle can also be used to show proximity, usually meaning "here". All of its uses are optional, for example, one may use "canar" as "to come" but to be more clear it's possible to use "hocanar" ** canar = to go --> hocanar = to come ** canendar = to arrive --> hocanendar = to arrive here (usually the listener's "here" because the speaker is always in its own "here") ** lenar = to take (from one place to another) --> holenar = to bring (from one place to here) * 'Law-' from lawa = law shows relation by marriage or similar relationship ** aytise = mother --> lawaytise = mother in law ** lawe = law * 'Disi- '''disseminating, separately ** denar = to give --> disidenar = distribute ** disio = disseminatingly ** disiar = disseminate * '''Ex-' ex-, former ** presidante = president --> expresidante = expresident ** exa = former * 'Ki-' "un-" the opposite meaning ** mayar = to buy --> kimayar = to sell ** tonge = east --> kitonge = west ** nore = north --> kinore = south ** kia = opposite (adj) ** kio = contrarily ** sendar = to send --> kisendar = to receive * 'Pre-' before, pre-, long ago in time ** historye = history --> prehistorye = prehistory ** visar = to see --> previsar = to aticipate (to have a vision) ** morne = morning --> premorne = early morning * '''Re- '''to repeat, to do again ** sendar = to send --> resendar = to resend ** kahar = to say --> rekahar = to repeat ** reo --> again * '''Mis- '''to do incorrectly ** komprenar = to understand --> miskomprenar = misunderstand ** usar = tu use --> misusar --> to misuse ** miso = mistakenly/wrongly * '''Far- from afar ** visar = to see --> farvisatore = television (the object) ** farvise = television * Dosav(a)-''' half-, semi- ** hore = hour --> dosava hore = half an hour * 'Kwasi-' almost, quasi-, pseudo ** nome = name --> kwasinome = pseudnim ** dyose = god --> kwasidyose = demigod ** ihe = son/daughter --> kwasiihe = stepson/daughter '''Suffixes I won't repeat the five verb suffixes, they are explained in the Verbs section * '-abl- '''capable ** visar = to see --> kivisablule = a blind person ** swimar = to swim --> swimabla = that can swim ** ablar = to be able, can ** abla = capable * '-ibl- possible, the passive counterpart of abl ** visibla = visible ** manqar = to eat --> manqibla = edible ** ibla = possible * '-ul-' individual characterized by the root ** Argentine = Argentina --> argentinule = an argentine ** anti = against --> antiule = an oppositor ** fengfa = rich --> fengfule = a rich person ** krone = crown --> kronule = king/queen ** kimayar = vender --> kimayule = sales person * '-wen- '''language ** Engle = England --> Englewene = English (lang) ** Franse = France --> Franswene = French (lang) ** Cine = China --> Cinwene = Chinese (lang) ** Israele = Israel --> Israelwene = Hebrew ** ''Some languages that can not derived from a place or people may not take -wen- and may not take the -e ending at all *** Esperanto = Esperanto *** Latine = Latin *** Klingon(e) = Klingon * '-aj-' concrete thing or material related to the root ** manqar = to eat; manqe = meal --> manqaje = food ** dulca = sweet --> dulcaje = a sweet/candy ** arbe = tree --> arbaje = wood * '-ez- '''state or abstract quality related to the root ** bela = beautiful --> beleze = beauty ** gara = warm; gare = warmth --> gareze = temperature ** ekwala = equal --> ekwaleze = equality ** libra = free --> libreze = freedom ** ule = an individual; uleze = individuality ** ''When you turn an adjective into noun and it already means the quality, -ez- is not necessary: *** fasta = fast --> faste = velocity (=fasteze) * '-il-' tool to do the verb of the root or related to it ** tingajarte = music --> tingajartile = a musical instrument ** ile = tool * '-og-' group of the root ** arbe = tree --> arboge = forest ** bede = sheep --> bedoge = a flock of sheep ** wome = wome --> womoge = humankind * '-iv-' tendency or inclination to do somthing (not all -ive English words end with this!) ** krear = to create --> kreiva = creative ** kahadar = to talk --> kahadiva = talkative ** rekahar = to repeat --> rekahiva = repetitive ** imaginar = to imagine --> imaginiva = imaginative * '-ind- '''worthy ** legar = to read --> leginda = read-worthy ** aceptar = to accept --> aceptinda = acceptable (worthy of acceptance) ** xyexar = to thank --> xyexinda = worthy of being thanked * '-eyn- 'recipient or container of the thing or characterized by the root ** male = money --> maleyne = wallet ** kigara = cool/cold --> kigareyne = fridge ** eyne = recipient * '-ist-''' professional of follower of a doctrine (can be interchangeable with -ul- in some words) ** dente = tooth --> dentiste = dentist ** helsar = to treat/cure --> helsiste = physician/doctor ** pyane = piano --> pyaniste = pianist ** Budha (or Budhe) = Buddha --> budhiste = buddhist * '-ism-' doctrine, idea, religion ** Kristo = Christ --> kristisme = christianity ** Budha = Buddha --> budhisme = buddhism ** Marx(e) = Marx --> marxisme = marxism * '-ator- '''machine, part of machine, or system that does the verb of the root (it's NOT used for people who do a work, -ist- or -ul- are used instead, not even roots should end with -ator if it's for people, in the rare case there is a profession that needs its own ''root then it may and in -ador, but preferably with -ist) ** fasteze = velocity; varyar = to change; fastevaryar = to accelerate --> fastevaryatore = accelerator ** udanar = to fly --> udanatore = flying machine, aircraft ** winge = wing --> wingudanatore = plane, aircraft with wings ** aspe = blade --> aspudanatore = helicopter ** qiswar = to calculate --> qiswatore = calculator * '-obl- '''mutiplication ** dosobla = double ** sanoblar = to triple ** kwarobla = quadruple ** oblar = to multiply * '-av- 'fraction ** dosave = a half ** sanavar = to divide in three parts ** kwarave = a quarter ** lune = moon/month --> lunave = week ** avar = to divide ** ave = fraction * '-al- 'color ** blode = blood --> blodala = red ** banane = banana --> bananala = yellow ** akaxe = sky --> akaxala = blue ** oranqe = orange --> oranqala = orange ** plante = plant --> plantala = green ** uve = grape --> uvala = purple/violet ** lume = light --> lumala = white ** kilume = darkness --> kilumala = black ** rake = ashes --> rakala = grey ** kafe = coffee --> kafala = brown ** ale = color ** By the way, to say "light blue" or "dark blue" and similar combinations, the word (ki)luma or the prefix (ki)lum- are used: *** lumakaxala = light blue *** kilumakaxala = dark blue *** lumrakala = light grey *** lum(a)blodala = pink * '-eg- 'a bigger or stronger counterpart of the root ** lafar = to laugh --> lafegar = to laugh a lot or very hard ** vente = wind --> ventege = a very strong wind ** gara = warm --> garega = hot ** kigara = cool --> kigarega = cold ** ega = big * '-it- 'a smaller or softer counterpart of the root ** lafar = to lough --> lafitar = to smile ** vente = wind --> ventite = a breeze ** lage = lake --> lagite = lagoon ** nade = river --> nadite = stream/creek ** gara = warm --> garita = warm but more temperate ** kigara = cool --> kigarita = cool but more temperate ** safine = ship --> safinite = boat ** ita = small * '-er- 'place ** mayar = to buy --> mayere = store ** manqar = to eat --> manqere = restaurant * '-otek- 'a place to save lots of the same thing ** kitabe = book --> kitaboteke = library ** male = money --> maloteke = bank * '-im- 'time, moment, season ** gara = warm --> garime = sommer ** kigara = cool --> kigarime = winter ** flore = flour --> florime = spring ** foyle = leaf; folar = to fall --> foylfolime = autumn * '-ar- 'this infinitive ending can also be used with other endings representing the meaning of the verb if the root itself doesn't express it well (thus the root is rather a noun or adjective than a verb) ** "krone" means "crown", and "kronar" is "to crown", but to say the name of the action one can't go back to "krone" to mean coronation, so one leaves the infinitive ending, thus "kronare" is "coronation". ** martile = hammer; martilar = to hammer --> martilare = hammering (the name of the action) * '-ij- 'a part or particle of the whole or of the material ** sande = sand --> sandije = a grain of sand ** sale = salt --> salije = a grain of salt ** himapate = snow --> himapatije = a snowflake * '-idr-''' leader, ruler, boss ** urbe = city --> urbidre = mayor ** province = province/state --> provincidre = gobernor ** lande = country --> landidre = president or prime minister ** safine = ship --> safinidre = captain * '-ih-' offspring, son ** wome = person/human --> womihe = child ** myawe = cat --> myawihe --> kitten ** faraxe = butterfly --> faraxihe = caterpillar ** kronule = king/queen --> kronulihe = prince/princess * '-is- -ir- '''the first one is for females and the second one for males ** ayte = parent --> aytise = mother; aytire = father ** ampenge = boy/girlfriend --> ampengise = girlfriend; ampengire = boyfriend ** ihe = son/daughter --> ihise = daughter; ihire = son ** ise = a female (of ani species) ** ire = a male (of ani species) ** ''These suffixes should not be used in excess, only when it's really necessary to mention gender/sex of the person/living being in question. * '-ik- '''means science or pseudoscience that studies X field (most words that in English end in -ics and -logy) ** ike = science ** nume = number --> numike = mathematics ** wene = language --> wenike = linguistics ** dyose = god --> dyosike = theology ** helse = health --> helsike = medicine '''Ki- and no-' The word no can be used in a similar way to ki-'' but they are not the same, the first one is the negation of the meaning, while the second one is the opposite meaning. Sometimes both arrive at the same meaning, in those cases ''ki should be used, but no may be used when ki ''does not create the correct meaning or doesn't make sense at all. There are words that could have been created through ''ki, ''but two separate roots have been chosen because either a shorter word was needed (such as for prepositions), a root that started in a vowel was needed (for suffixes such as ''eg and it), or the two words should be different for better understanding (such as pre and pos). '''Short words not worthy of being classified Some words and phrases in many languages like "very", "too", "and", "but", "al least", "still" and so on, are difficult to classify and usually don't follow the same rules. In Terwene that means that these words don't take any ending in their usual form. Here is a list: * He '''and ** Mi manqan pane he trinkan cate = I eat bread and drink tea * '''Or '''inclusive or * '''Xor '''exvlusive or * '''Tan '''but * '''Hen '''very ** Tu swan hen bela = You are very beautiful * '''Tay too (in the sense of too much) ** Data swan tay ega = That one is too big * Amba '''both * '''Ye '''also, too ** Mi aman wofes, mi aman ye myawes = I love dogs, I love cats too ** Tu manqan pane, ye mi manqan pane = You eat bread, I also eat bread * '''Mas (plus, plu, pli) ** Plus in maths: wan mas dos swan san = one plus two is three ** More and -er in comparison: mi volan mas pane = I want more bread ** Anymore when with no: Mi no mas dorman bonu = I don't sleep well anymore * Mos ** Most and -est in comparison ** Mose '''maximum (noun): Xenos swan mose? = How much is the maximum? ** '''Mosa maximum (adj): Kimosa ose swan deg = The maximum amount is ten ** Moso '''at most: Mi volan moso deg = I want at most ten * '''Kimas ** Minus in math: san kimas dos swan wan = three minus two is one ** Less in comparison: hi swan kimas tala ke tu = she is less tall than you * Kimos ** Least in comparison: Tu swan kimos teliga = You are the least intelligent ** Minime 'minimum (noun): Xenus swan kimos'e? = How much is the minimum? ** Minima '''minimum (adj): Kimosa ose swan deg = The minimum amount is ten ** '''Minimo '''at least: Kimoso deg womes hocanel = At least ten people came * '''Kwasi ** Almost: Mi kwasi canendan = I'm almost arriving ** + no barely: Mi kwasi no dorman = I barely sleep * Ankor ** Still: Hi ankor manqan = He's still eating ** + no yet: Tu ankor no manqel = You haven't eaten yet * Yam ** Already: Mi yam komprenan = I already understand ** Yet: Tu yam manqel hoer ma? = Have you eaten here yet? ** + no no longer: Mi yam no manqan rowe = I no longer eat meat * Sun '''soon * '''Preroto '''yesterday * '''Horoto '''today * '''Posroto '''tomorrow * '''Roto daily * Lunavo '''weekly * '''Luno monthly * Yaro '''annualy * '''Iven '''even ** Iven tu komprenan date = Even you understand that * '''Jus '''just (recently) ** Mi jus karel so = I just made it * '''Tuy '''immediately ** Hocanos tuy! = Come immediately '''Other vocabulary Animal and human parts * Kepe = extremity, limb (arms, legs, tails, trunks) ** Sorkepe = arm ** Xyakepe = leg ** Kiamamkepe = tail ** Olar = to smell --> olile = nose --> olilkepe = trunk * Visar = to see --> visile = eye * Olar = to smell --> olile = nose * Tingar = to hear --> tingile = ear * Onte = lip ** Ontoge = mouth * Oste = bone * Towfe = hair * Visiltowfe = eyelash * Frente = forehead * Visilfrente = eyebrow * Pyele = skin * Jisme = body * Mane = hand * Kepite = finger, toe * Fute = foot * Kepitedire = nail (dire = shield) * Neke = neck * Maneneke = wrist * Pensar = to think --> pensile = brain * Towe = head * Towmyene = face * Dile = heart * Dente = tooth Rooms * Rume = room * Cefar = to cook --> cefrume = kitchen * Dormar = to sleep --> dormerume = bedroom * Manqar = to eat --> manqerume = dining room * Limpyar = to wash --> limpyerume = washing room * Banyar = to take a bath --> banyerume = bathroom (with shower) * Necesar = to need --> necesrume = bathroom (with or without a shower) * Vite = life --> vitrume = living room Person, human, man and woman The word for human, man and woman is "wome" which may take a suffix to specify gender. However, even though some languages, like Chinese, have only one word for person/human, I decided to have a separate word for person, since humans are a species, while person is more like an intelligent being. Think about it, would you rather call an Artificial Intelligence which is as smart and concious as a us a human or a person? Would you rather call an intelligent alien a human or a person? Also the word "person" is used for other meanings, such as "juridical person". So, the word for person is "persone". IUPAC nomenclature Alkanes (alkanes), alkenes (alkenes) and alcynes (alkines) use Terwene numbers as prefixes. * Wanalkane = methane * Dosalkene = ethene * Degwanalkine = undecyne Similar prefixes and suffixes are usually created from Terwene's own words to create a scientific vocabulary much more comprehensible to common people, not just scientists who studied for years. 'Example text' Mars (planet) Wikipedia article "Marse (planete). Marse swan kwara planete fro Sole he dosa mas ita planete en Sola Sisteme pos Merkure. So han nome de roma dyose de harbe, he so plurimo swan nomeda "Blodala Planete" kos blodaloyda fera oxigaje sor sey te myene denan to so blodaloyda oyde xena swan kivehifa inter astres visibla to akela visile. Marse swan petra planete ko kidensa ayreparate, so han myena myazes oyda to Lune te krateres he to Tere te vales, sahares, he pola barfa parates. Marse te rota imege he gara cikle ye swan oyda to tera te, xeno swan kline xena kosan gara cikle. Sor Marse swan Olimpus Monte, mos ega hwomonte he dosa mos tala koneda monte en Sola Sisteme, he ye swan Vale Marineris xena swan wan de mos ega vales en Sola Sisteme. Kirofa Norapola Diprese en nora dosavesfire okupan kwardeg interpaye de planete he iblo swan egega kratere. Marse han dos lunes: Fobose he Deymose, xena swan ita he ko kiregula morfe. Sosu iblo swan kapteda astrites, xeno 5261 Eureka, wan Marsa trojane." Dictionary Dictionary with English and Spanish translations and examples